CYANIDE has been conscripted into the war against cancer. The idea is to
target the deadly poison at cancer cells without harming the patient.
Laboratory results presented at the BA have demonstrated the strategy is on
course. “We’re hoping to begin animal trials in a year’s time,” says Mahendra
Deonarain, head of the team at Imperial College, London, that is developing the
treatment for Antisoma, a London-based biotechnology company.
His plan is to make sure that the cyanide is only produced in tumour tissue.
An antibody that binds only to cancer cells will be joined to an enzyme from the…
